Photography is the ultimate tool for creating empathy, awareness and understanding across cultures; a tool for helping us see that the survival of the planet is intertwined with our own survival.
There’s also a strong connection between images and empathy; when we see something that touches us, it helps us to connect our brains and hearts to feel love and compassion for other living beings. While science and research are critical to understanding the planet, photography can often reach people in other profound and emotional ways.
Photographers have a huge opportunity to inform and influence change, but for an image to have significance, it needs to tell a story. That is the impetus behind Vital Impacts, a non-profit founded by award-winning National Geographic photographer Ami Vitale and journalist Eileen Mignoni.
They are having a print sale with some serious names involved, including Paul Nicklen, Nick Brandt, Jimmy Chin, and even Dr Jane Goodall. If you want to buy art that has a message and meaning behind each image and supports a great cause, you can do so until December 31.
This is a unique moment to reimagine our relationship with nature and to each other. We need to do all we can to care for the plants and critters that inhabit the earth. Our future happiness depends on them
The list of 100 names is basically a who’s who list of National Geographic covers and the most prestigious names in the fine art world, as well as some spectacular up-and-coming talents.
The photographers who have been selected for this sale are renowned for their dedication to the planet and are donating to support the conservation campaigns: Big Life Foundation, Jane Goodall Institute's Roots and Shoots program, Great Plains Conservation Project Ranger and Sea Legacy.
It’s also a chance to support five Kenyan photographers: Clement Mwang, Gurcharan Roopra, Nili Gudkha, Allan Gichigi and Georgina Goodwin.
Many pieces selected from the sale feature other Kenyan-inspired photographs, including Ami Vitale’s Last Goodbye, of keeper Jojo Wachira giving his final goodbye to the last male northern white rhino, moments before he passed away; Nick Brandt’s images from The Day May Break series; and Will Burrard-Lucas’s work after spending a year photographing leopards at night in Laikipia.
One of the exclusive highlights is a select handful of hand-signed Dr Jane Goodall prints that have never before been made available. Included in the sale is a self-portrait she took herself more than 60 years ago, while working in Gombe National Park with her beloved chimpanzees.
There are both open and limited editions available in a variety of sizes. And with prints on sale at a range of prices, there is something for every budget. The prints are the perfect holiday gift that also gives back to charity and is a great way to get some new art for your home.
Vitale says, "This is a unique moment to reimagine our relationship with nature and to each other. We all need to do all we can to care for the plants and critters that inhabit the earth. They are fellow travellers in this universe. Our future happiness depends on them."